Over the past year, I´ve been consulting as a Business Analyst here in Alicante, Spain, and during this time I´ve noticed surprising cultural differences after having worked in the UK and Australia. Some things to note if you find yourself working here!

Upon being introduced to a new colleague, if you are female then you should greet the other person with a kiss on each cheek (kissing the air, not the cheek).

On your birthday, you must bring cakes to the office for your colleagues to celebrate! At this point, more kissing ensues as people wish you feliz cumpleaños (happy birthday).

If you get in a lift at work and there is someone else already there, it´s considered polite to greet them with a buenos dias, and then to say hasta luego (see you later) when you get out.

In general, people are a more tactile in Spain and this also extends to the workplace (don´t be surprised if people touch you on the arms or shoulder for example).

The Spanish are a little more relaxed about punctuality, and being 5-10 minutes late for meetings is not considered rude (conversely, us Brit are so renowned for our punctuality that when a British colleague was unusually a few minutes late for a recent meeting our Spanish colleagues were genuinely worried about her :) ).

Beautiful Alicante city

​ Working hours

Typically, people start working a little later in the morning, around 9:30am, then take a coffee with colleagues before getting started for the day.

Here it´s usual to eat with your colleagues and to take at least an hour, often longer, with coffee afterwards. Lunch tends to be the largest meal of the day and you rarely see anyone eating a sandwich or eating at their desk.

Over lunch, people don´t typically discuss business and instead use the time to socialise with colleagues.

Siesta is becoming less common in office workplaces, but those who do take a siesta break may take a couple of hours in the afternoon and then work later in the evening

The workday rarely finish before 6-7pm and after work, Spanish people generally socialise more with their colleagues outside of work.

Holidays often occur on Tuesdays or Thursday, so it´s common to take the Monday or Friday off (puente) for a long weekend.

Most people take vacation in August, and during the summer months some workplaces change to jornada intensiva: 8am to 3pm.

Other traits I´ve noticed about my Spanish colleagues is that they are in general very friendly and welcoming, and also humble in their attitude.

I´ve found that working in Spain is a great way of getting to know the culture and making a local network. Along the way I´ve also learnt a few colourful phrases from the locals to add to my vocabulary that they don´t teach you in your Spanish language classes :)

Have you noticed other differences working in Spain? I´d be interested to hear about your experience!